The Troubletone Incursion
by moonswirl
Summary: Gleekathon, days 855b-861b: sequel to "the Visitor Complex"; Before they rejoin New Directions, the Troubletones head on a trip to Pasadena, dropping in to visit Brittany's friends...
1. 1 The Road Trip Decision

_Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 40th cycle. Now cycle 41!_

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><p><em><strong>INTRODUCING "CHEAT SHEET" - <strong>If you want to know ahead of time when a certain series will be updated next, just reassemble the link below and check out the list, save it, print it, bookmark it, whatever you need!  
>Go to: <span>gleekathon [dot] tumblr [dot] com [slash] cheatsheet<span>_

_** UPDATED WITH CYCLE 41 CHEAT SHEET ** Check it out to find out about **shift days**!_

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><p><em><strong>This is a shift day [see above].<strong> There was another upload this morning: Broken Down and Out._

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><p><strong>"The Troubletone Incursion"<br>(from Glee) Brittany, Santana, Mercedes, Sugar  
>(from TBBT) Penny, Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, Raj, Bernadette, and Amy<br>**

**Glee/The Big Bang Theory Crossover  
>sequel to "The Visitor Complex"<br>(if you need info on either show, let me know!) **

**1. The Road Trip Decision**

_Lima, Ohio_

They were going back, it had been decided. The Troubletones were reintegrating into New Directions, at least that was the case for Mercedes, Santana and Brittany. The others had the choice to join in as well, but except for Sugar there had been no takers. So that made four of them, and before long, there were whisperings… They had to do something, to commemorate this time that was not so much coming to an end as it was being put on pause… They would always be Troubletones.

"We could get matching tattoos," Brittany suggested as the four of them sat at the Lima Bean.

"You climb the walls when you need to get a shot, how are you going to get a tattoo?" Santana frowned.

"Get her drunk," Mercedes and Sugar spoke at once, and Brittany nodded in agreement, which made Santana laugh.

"No tattoos," she still declared.

"Matching cars?" Sugar shrugged.

"Okay, now we're on to something," Santana spun back to her, tempted.

"No cars," Mercedes declared and Santana frowned.

"Fine, then you come up with something," Santana gave the challenge. There was silence for about a minute, and then Sugar smacked the table and held her hands in the air, gathering their attention. She held them in suspense, smiling, then dropped it on them.

"Road trip!" she declared, and after a shared look from the other three the decision was made. "Yes?" Sugar sprang upright, giddy.

"Yes," the three spoke one by one.

"Okay, but where are we going? It's winter, I'm not spending hours and hours packed in a car with all of you," Mercedes stated. Finally, Brittany, Santana, and Mercedes turned to Sugar. After a moment unaware they were looking at her, Sugar saw them and understood.

"I can get the money for tickets from my father," she volunteered. They waited. "And hotel."

"Alright, so where are we going?" Santana put to the group. Again the question prompted a number of suggestions, growing more and more extravagant and impossible every time, although at that point it was clear this was only for fun. Once they dialled it back, they agreed maybe they were better off staying in the country.

"That might be best, actually," Sugar spoke innocently, which put questions in their heads, but they left it alone.

"New York?" Mercedes suggested.

"I still have Nationals remorse from that. Next?" Santana shook her head.

"Fine, then the opposite coast: California."

Brittany's head popped up at the word, as though lifted by a flurry of memories, of a week amongst new friends in Pasadena. She had to wonder, turning to her Troubletones…

"Pasadena," she spoke up. "I know some people there."

"That could work," Mercedes shrugged.

"Is that the guy with the banana bread?" Santana asked, like she could still smell it; Brittany had donated some of the loaves she'd received as a goodbye. Brittany nodded. "We're going to Pasadena," Santana declared.

X

_One hour later – Pasadena, California_

Penny had made her exit from the apartment across the hall from her own when it had become clear that the four of them – Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, and Raj – had completely forgotten she was there. The way their argument over Sheldon and Leonard's new figurine purchases were going, all she could see for that evening was four grown men flipping through comic books for hours until one of them proved they were right, and she did not have that kind of willpower.

When she'd reached her apartment though, she saw her answering machine blinking… an audition maybe? She clicked and waited for the message, moving to retrieve the bottle of wine she'd started the night before.

"Hi, Penny? It's Brittany, call back please?"

That was the extent of the message. Penny had stayed planted there for a moment, surprised. She hadn't seen the girl since her visit to her aunt, two floors down from her, a few months back. Still they had kept in touch, and she would gladly welcome a return. Now there was this cryptic little message… She didn't get so much surprised, she decided, more like confused. She didn't sound hurt or distressed… One way to find out. So she picked up the phone and called her.

"Hello?"

"Brittany, hey! It's Penny, you called?"

"Guys, quiet, it's her!" she heard Brittany's voice, semi-distant… only getting weirder. "Hi, Penny!"

"Hey…" she laughed. "I got your message, it was… well, not long. Said to call, so I called. What's up?" she asked, sitting on the couch. Maybe she shouldn't have left the wine so far away, but she didn't want to get up and now all she could do was glance at it.

"My friends and I are planning a trip, and one of them said California, so I thought we could come to Pasadena. We'd stay in a hotel, but it'd be cool if we could hang out…"

"A hotel?" Penny asked, smirking. "Your parents are putting you up this time?" she asked, figuring she would have stayed with her aunt again.

"No, Sugar's dad is."

"Wait, a sugar daddy?" She was glad the wine was far away now.

"What's a… Wait, what…" Brittany spoke after a beat. Brittany's voice grew distant again, and Penny could hear her relay what had been said. She could then make out another voice, possibly telling her to say it again. "My friend, her name's Sugar, her father is paying."

"Who the hell names their kid Sugar?" Penny mumbled to herself while she calmed down. "Okay, well that's good then, can't wait to see you and… your friends," she blinked, then started laughing. "I can't wait to see the look on Sheldon's face when he finds out…"

"Don't tell him, it'll be a surprise," Brittany told her. Penny nodded to herself.

"You got it, I…" She stopped, hearing the door across the hall open and shut, accompanied by yelling. "Hopefully things will have cooled off here by then… When are you coming?"

"We don't know yet, but I'll call back."

"Awesome, thanks for calling." After they'd hung up, Penny retrieved her bottle, still hearing the argument outside. She shook her head to herself, ignoring it. Now she had a secret to maintain… She laughed again… This was going to be good.

TO BE CONTINUED (TOMORROW)


	2. 2 The First Class 3 The Pasadena

_**This is a DOUBLE day [see above].** Two chapters in one!_

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><p><strong>"The Troubletone Incursion"<strong>

**2 & 3: The First Class Infiltration / The Pasadena Reunion**

_The First Class Infiltration_

_Two days later_

Getting to the airport had come off like something of a miracle, all things considered. Deciding to take the trip was not even half the battle, more like a quarter of the battle. Four high school girls wanting to fly off to the other side of the country for a week out of the blue apparently didn't go over too well with parents… some parents. Sugar was the first to get the okay, on top of the financing. Brittany had to promise her parents she would check in with her aunt, which was not a problem, since she was planning to visit Penny and the guys anyway. Santana wouldn't cop to it, but they were fairly certain she hadn't been completely honest with her parents as to the nature of the trip. The last holdout was Mercedes, and down to the wire they had been unsure she'd get to come with them. In the end, with Mr. Motta confirming they would be flying first class and staying in their hotel's best suite, and Mr. Pierce giving them the contact information for his sister in Pasadena, they were on.

The night before had been Suitcase Summit. It was a miracle any of them got anything done, with so much back and forth texting: what to bring, what not to bring, can I borrow this, that's broken, you need to buy this, we'll get that when we're there… By the time they were done, and Brittany had stopped trying to bring Lord Tubbington, it was so late sleep didn't seem to have a point, having to drive to make it to the airport, 58 miles away in Dayton. So Sugar mass texted for them to get outside their houses with their suitcases, she was picking them up and she was bringing coffee.

Coffee was the best idea at this point. Once they'd made it to the airport and had to wait to board it was a fight against the sandman, which was to be fought off with cup after cup, until the plane, at which point sleep was their one and only ability. They were hoping to enjoy the perks of first class, but once they had their seats, it was 'nice pillows' and all four girls had fallen asleep.

Santana had been woken by a boy hollering in the row behind her and she was congratulating him in her mind for catching her when sleep was more appealing than yelling at him. But then as she tried and resettled to fall asleep, she noticed the weight of a head on her shoulder, the blonde hair curtained over her face… Brittany was sound asleep, showing the 'nice pillows' in first class had nothing on the shoulder of Santana Lopez. This made her smile. She took her hand, and sleep regained her instantly, missing Sugar's ramblings in her sleep, where she was being chased by a giraffe.

They slowly woke up, one by one, as they were descending to LAX, fully rested and not nearly as achy as sleeping upright should have left them. Luggage retrieved, they were met by a car hired out by Mr. Motta to take them the 21 miles to the hotel, after which they would be on their own. After a slow start, the ride quickly picked up in energy as the girls woke up more and more. By the time they reached the hotel and sleep was no longer an issue, it became hunger, which only got put aside once they saw their room.

"It's huge…" Brittany blinked.

"That's definitely the word I'd use," Mercedes nodded.

"Well done," Santana nodded, then paused. "How many beds?" she looked to Sugar.

"Only two, but…" They paused, Santana and Brittany sharing a look, but then…

"Whatever you two are thinking of doing, stop," Mercedes pointed her finger at each of them, stern. "I'm not having you two doing whatever it is you do where I can hear you… or see you." Sugar was resisting the urge of bursting our laughing.

"We'll get you a nice sleep mask… and ear plugs…" Santana smirked at her. Before Mercedes could argue, she chuckled. "It's a joke, okay? We can share, Britt and Sugar can have the other one… Okay?" she shrugged and Mercedes finally nodded.

Once they were settled in and their lunch arrived – room service – they sat to eat, turning the topic to Brittany's friends, which had brought the four of them to Pasadena in the first place. So she told them.

"I came to visit my aunt last summer, and I got to her building and there was this guy in the lobby, for some reason he took me up to his floor, and that's where I met Penny; she lives across the hall from him. Sheldon, that's his name."

"Sheldon?" Sugar repeated the name, laughing, and Mercedes threw her a look.

"My aunt was working, I was bored, and then I ran into Penny again and we started hanging out. Spent time with her, and a couple other guys, and Sheldon. Spent more time with him," Brittany nodded. She remembered their afternoon playing video games, where she'd gotten him to dance, and it made her smile… but then she also remembered he'd sworn her to secrecy. She hadn't even told Santana about it, which to her was saying a lot. Keeping that in mind, she'd covered with a bite and a sip of her lunch. "Also he makes this banana bread…"

"I still have dreams about that thing," Santana shook her head, giving Brittany proper reason to uncover a grin.

"Are they cute?" Sugar asked.

"How old are they?" Mercedes asked.

"I don't know how old they are, but…" her reply to Sugar's question was a sly little smile, which got an indecisive look from Mercedes, a giddy one from Sugar, and a frown from Santana.

"So come on then, let's go!" Sugar declared. With dinner done, the four made their way to 2311 Los Robles. Brittany texted Penny they were on their way: now she had to keep the guys there.

_The Pasadena Reunion_

It was a full house that afternoon, with seven of them gathered in the living room: Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, Raj, Bernadette, Amy, and herself. It was just as well, with the group being on its way, but she had a feeling eleven people at once in the apartment would not sit well with… well, one of them. The conversation was not exactly holding her attention, the lot of them arguing about… something to do with that Doctor Who show… If anything, it would keep them here, unsuspecting.

When she felt her phone vibrate though, she startled, gave a coy smile, then snuck a look at the screen. They would be here soon. She slipped her phone back in her pocket, sitting back with a smirk. When Sheldon spotted this, frowning in confusion, she just bit it back and, digging in her memories of past "Who" conversations, tried to find something to set them off and keep them going a while longer.

"So… they threw out the tapes?" she 'asked,' tenting her fingers together with 'curiosity'… and they were off. Penny sat back, watching her handiwork unfold. No one was leaving in the foreseeable future.

X

_Ten minutes later – Lobby_

The taxi had deposited the four girls in front of the building and Brittany had led them inside, looking around the lobby she'd last seen months before… She was happy to be back.

"Oh, the elevator doesn't work, we have to take the stairs," she pointed up.

"The sign kind of covered that," Mercedes did her own pointing, but Brittany was already climbing. "What floor?"

"Fourth," she answered. Once they got to the second floor, she stopped at one door and slipped a note under the door, which they guessed was her aunt's. "She's at work at this hour," she provided the answer without a prompt. "Okay, a few things," she stopped and turned as they reached the third floor and the others stopped short of bumping into her.

"Don't just stop like that," Sugar shook her head.

"So Sheldon, he's got his special spot on the couch, you can't sit there. Raj can't talk to the girls unless he's drunk. Howard might hit on you. I though he and Raj were together, but they say they're not. There's other things, I think, but I can't remember right now… They don't know we're coming, just Penny knows," she counted off. "Okay?" she smiled, waiting for their answers before they could climb the last flight of stairs. The load was more confusing than heavy, but they gave nods and the turned to lead them up to the fourth floor, stopping at the door marked 4A. With the others behind her, she grinned… She'd been waiting months to do this…

X

_Inside_

"… a complete disregard for the rest of us!" Sheldon's gesture was so sharp, both Amy and Bernadette had to retreat and duck into the couch not to get whacked in the glasses by his arm. In the stunned beat of silence though… there came a noise which, with all seven of them in there, caught them even more off guard: three rapid knocks.

"Sheldon!" the voice startled them; they knew that voice. Three more knocks. "Sheldon!" He sprang to his feet, before the final three knocks and a final and almost sing-song… "Sheldon!"

"That sounded like…" Howard frowned, while Sheldon made a tentative approach of the door. He pulled it open, quick, maybe to surprise the person on the other side in case it wasn't who he'd thought it was, but when he saw it was her, he was the one who stood there in absolute surprise. Seeing that, Brittany grinned brightly.

"Brittany… You're here…" he was still stunned. Months ago he would have refused her arrival, but then things had changed, and at her departure he hadn't exactly been sad, but he wasn't cheering either. Now she was back and he wasn't sure how to react.

"Can we come in?" she asked, and he finally realized she wasn't alone, spotted the three girls behind her.

"Of course you can!" Penny answered for him, unable to wait any longer, moving up to greet the blonde with a hug. "Welcome back!" Brittany hugged back, equally happy to see her. "And that's your friends?" she guessed, looking ahead.

Santana, Mercedes, and Sugar walked past the still silenced Sheldon and took in the new faces… Somehow this didn't track with the portrait Brittany had painted, but then they guessed they should have known…

"That's Mercedes, and Sugar, and Santana," she pointed to each of them. There was a silence as it didn't occur to Brittany to do the reverse introductions. In the end, Sugar had to ask.

"Which one doesn't talk to girls?"

"Alright, there are too many people in here," Sheldon spoke up before anyone could answer.

"And that's our cue to bow out," Howard stood. "Ladies…" he nodded to the girls, made to leave. Bernadette followed behind, throwing a silent wave. Raj stood as well, opened his mouth, but couldn't get a word out, so he, too, had to opt for the silent wave. Leonard got up then.

"Where are you going, you live here," Penny frowned and he shushed her, following the rest. This left Penny, Sheldon, and their visitors… and Amy, the only one still sitting, as she appeared to be weighing the options between leaving and staying.

"Everyone's leaving…" Brittany pointed out, confused.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Sheldon replied. "Also, shouldn't girls your age be in school right now?" he asked, and Penny just bit back her lip; she'd never heard him sound so almost… fatherly.

"What's it to you?" Sugar asked, raising her chin, which gave a rise to Amy.

"Answer him," she nodded.

"We took time off, what's the big deal, we're on break soon anyway," Santana pointed out.

"Maybe we should go back to the hotel," Brittany looked to the girls, to Penny. "We just came to say hi, that we're here… You should come by sometimes, and we'll see you, too, right?" she looked to Penny, really to Sheldon.

"I have the day off, day after tomorrow, why don't I come by the hotel, we can have a spa day. I can call Bernadette, too…" A throat was cleared. "And Amy, also." Penny added. "And, you know, you can come by the Cheesecake Factory."

"Sounds good," Brittany nodded, and so they'd left. Penny looked back to Sheldon, gave a smile.

"What?" he asked.

"You missed her, admit it," she teased. He refused to answer, exiting to his room. "Come on, Amy," she just laughed, leading the girl across the hall to her apartment.

TO BE CONTINUED (TOMORROW)


	3. 4 The Visitor Recall

_**This is a shift day [see above].** There was another upload this morning: Money, Money, Money._

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><p><strong>"The Troubletone Incursion"<strong>

**4. The Visitor Recall**

**A/N: Almost forgot! Someone asked on info about Sugar and the Troubletones. I put the info at the end of this chapter!**

_Two days later_

Penny had picked up Bernadette and Amy to head to the hotel for their spa day with Brittany and her friends. Bernadette looked determined to go about this day. They'd later find out it had to do with Howard's voicing of discomfort over her going to this spa and having men massage her. Her voice had reached shrill new heights. Amy was showing a completely different sort of determination: she was really happy to be there, with them, and with how she was winding herself up about even going, she definitely needed the relaxation she would achieve there.

Before long, the conversation turned to these girls they were off to meet. Amy hadn't been in town when Brittany had last visited, and Bernadette had only met her briefly. Penny had told them her side of it.

"He thought we were related. I'm pretty sure I know why and he's lucky I didn't kick his ass for it."

"It's not impossible, a couple of attractive blondes, such as yourselves," Amy piped in from the back.

"Anyway," Penny pulled back the conversation. "She was kind of… out there, but she was nice, and she was stuck in that apartment all day, so I brought her out to hang with the guys, and at the Cheesecake Factory. Plus she really threw Sheldon off his game, so that was kind of fun," she shrugged.

"I thought he was okay with her," Bernadette asked, looking through her bag.

"First couple of days he was all 'panic room' about getting away from her. He actually stayed home from work a couple times," she laughed. "I probably shouldn't tell you guys this…"

"Oh, please?" Bernadette turned to her.

"Spill it, Blondie," Amy nodded from the back.

"No, but really, I wasn't even supposed to know, but she slipped one time and I ended up getting it out of her," Penny went on, which wasn't diminishing the girls' curiosity. "Brittany stayed back one day and apparently she ran into Sheldon and got him to let her hang around the apartment, play video games… And word is she unleashed his inner dance machine," she grinned.

"You mean with the…" Bernadette mimed waving a remote and Penny nodded. "But he never wants to play," she frowned, recalling a number of evenings where the rest of them had stepped up and played, while Sheldon sat back, refusing to partake, calling the whole thing pointless.

"I don't know how she did it, but she did," Penny shook her head.

"Well, sure, Sheldon is a fine dancer," Amy declared. "His hands don't wander or anything… no matter how hard I try." Penny and Bernadette shared a quiet look, somewhere between amusement and cringing.

"Which ones did he do?" Bernadette asked Penny, smiling again.

"Jump on the line," she revealed.

"Is that the one with the guy that looks like a pirate?" Bernadette vaguely recalled, and then something clicked. "Hang on a minute, that's the one where they go like this," she made a move with her arms.

"It might be," Penny just smirked. Bernadette would have seen her, once or twice, no matter how discreet she was. "I could have kept it to myself, but what would have been the fun in that… So, once in a while, I may or may not have used that knowledge to my advantage against him… You'd be surprised how quick he… jumps in line…" she snickered.

"Despicable," Amy shook her head in very slim disapproval, even if they could tell she was just as amused. Bernadette just laughed.

"But he'll know how you found out, won't he take it out on Brittany?" she asked after a moment.

"That's the thing," Penny shook her head. "By the time she left, he wasn't running away from her anymore. I don't know what she did that day that changed his mind about her, but he completely changed his tune. I mean he's still Sheldon, but he's got this whole other demeanor when it comes to her. You know, she'll call sometimes, and we'll talk for a while. Then she'll want to talk to him and he makes time for her. I always found it kind of brotherly, you know, he tolerates her, in a good way. When she said she was visiting, and she wanted it to be a surprise, I figured 'perfect.' His reaction was just priceless though," she shook her head with a smile.

"Well he was shocked, I'll give you that," Amy spoke up.

"No, it was more than that," she told her, though she wouldn't get into it with them.

He'd been surprised, as planned, but there was a difference between 'caught off guard' surprise and an emotional response. Already to expect a reaction like that from Sheldon was one thing, but to recognize it for what it was took more of an eye, and Penny had it. Sheldon could play it cool, but that girl had gotten to him. By any means she should have killed whatever little amount of patience he could muster, but she'd gone and found his middle ground. Now when she'd come, and he'd heard her voice through the door, it was almost like… she'd come home. He cared, maybe not enough that he'd dote on her, but there really was something fatherly about it, at least in Penny's eyes.

Then there was the day before, when she'd seen him go down to 'talk' to Brittany's aunt, as he'd called it, though to Penny it had seemed more like an interrogation, making sure she was aware her niece was in town, and that she'd make sure she was alright. She wouldn't be surprised if she found out a poor receptionist had gotten the same stern talking to.

"Well today should be fun right, girls' day at the spa," Bernadette smiled. "Nice steam, a massage…" She looked to her phone and saw new messages. "Howard…" she scolded like he was there, reading his texts.

"Sweetie, put the phone away, we're here," Penny pulled the car into the lot.

TO BE CONTINUED (TOMORROW)

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><p><strong>as requested...<strong>

**ABOUT SUGAR MOTTA**

_**"**Sugar Motta is a student at William McKinley High School who actively performed with The Troubletones until their loss at Sectionals 2011. Sugar comes from a wealthy family, and as such is a very spoiled young woman who is used to frequently getting her own way. Despite her own opinion on the matter, Sugar has very little musical talent. She seems to be a very good dancer as shown in Troubletones group performances. She is currently a member of the New Directions._

_Sugar diagnosed herself with Asperger's Syndrome, stating that she can "pretty much say whatever she wants," giving her an excuse for the constant insults she gives out. She believes she is talented and better than everyone in the Glee Club but she is actually not as talented as she thinks she is. However, after a while she seems to have mellowed, becoming a generally nicer person; in I Kissed a Girl she not only performs with the New Directions' girls to help Santana but also seems to be talking in a friendly way with New Directions members throughout the episode. She also is seen enjoying the performances of Perfect, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun and Constant Craving, and her singing seems to have improved to the point that she can sing backing vocals as she sings along in the background to I Kissed A Girl, as well as her backing vocals in Troubletones performances. In Yes/No she gets solo line in Summer Nights. Sugar tends to be rather quirky, making exaggerated gestures and odd faces in the background."_

**ABOUT THE TROUBLETONES**

_"The Troubletones was the second glee club based in William McKinley High School. The club was started when Al Motta privately donated enough money to Principal Figgins to allow for the continuation of an additional show choir which heavily featured his daughter, Sugar. On Al Motta's request, Principal Figgins summoned Shelby Corcoran from New York to direct the group. Later, Mercedes convinced fellow glee clubbers Santana and Brittany to join The Troubletones alongside her, which forced Sugar into the background of the group performances."_

__**(information comes from glee wikia)**


	4. 5 The Spa 6 The Bread

_**This is a DOUBLE day [see above].** Two chapters in one!_

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><p><strong>"The Troubletone Incursion"<strong>

**5 & 6: The Spa Excursion / The Bread Condition**

_The Spa Excursion_

After their brief visit to Sheldon's apartment the day they'd arrived, the girls had gone back to the hotel. With the day's travels in them, the time difference, and their first trip out of the hotel, they weren't particularly in the mood to hit the town, so a slow night was the plan. They'd grabbed take-out on the way back, set up in front of the television… Somewhere mid-meal, Brittany had discovered the sound system, Santana had declared the mini bar opened… Their slow night had turned into dancing until three in the morning. How no one had called security on them was a small miracle.

They'd woken up, had a late breakfast, and then they'd gone around, played tourist around Pasadena all day, did some shopping… Night number two had turned out a lot like night number one.

By the morning of day three, they were ready for their spa day. Brittany was the first one up. Sugar, sleeping at her side, was still giving the occasional little snore, fidgeting, with her sleep mask over her eyes. Mercedes had the covers up so high all they could see was some hair. And then Santana, forever a warm body in her sleep, had kicked off the covers long ago, curled up and holding on to her pillow… it made her look small.

Brittany had ordered breakfast from room service, waited for the smell of food and coffee to draw out her roommates, all but hovering toward the table. They would be meeting Penny and her friends in the lobby. With Penny's group having heard about Brittany's, and Brittany's having heard about Penny's, their meeting was filled with curious looks from one end to the other.

"Okay, so let's go," Penny nodded, breaking the stare off, and the seven girls headed toward the spa. It hadn't taken long for them to come to the conclusion that their paths would diverge, from one treatment to another. So before that could happen, they had collectively changed and headed for the hot tub. The day hadn't truly begun, no one had mingled or really talked, and it showed in the two huddles in the tub. Once again, Penny had found herself the ice breaker. "Is this your first time in California?" she asked the girls.

"I was here last summer…" Brittany answered, but Penny shook her head and indicated the other three.

"I've been here, lots of times," Sugar nodded, while the other two shook their heads.

"We don't travel much," Mercedes shrugged.

"Hey, neither did I," Penny shrugged. "I thought I was so cool, moving out here to be an actress," she recounted.

"You're an actress?" Sugar seemed suddenly interested, then paused. "I don't recognize you from anything. What were you in?"

"I, well…" Penny tried to sound on top of her game, though it was hard when all she had to really stand on was one lousy hemorrhoid commercial. "I'm still looking for my big break, you know the right project," she nodded her head.

"How long have you been here?" Santana asked, and Penny decided a redirect was due.

"Oh, you don't want to hear about that," she waved it off. "So you're in Glee Club, what's that like?"

"It's awesome," Brittany smiled.

"Yeah, most times," Mercedes nodded, and there was a beat of remembering their defeat. This was quickly shoved to the side as they suddenly found themselves in the presence of a very enthused Bernadette.

"My high school had one of those clubs when I was there! Oh but my mother wouldn't let me join them," she shook her head. "She said that was a bad crowd, and the word 'gateway' was thrown around a lot," she explained.

"So what do you do now?" Brittany asked.

"I'm a microbiologist," she nodded, and Brittany looked to Santana for assistance.

"Big leap," was Santana's response.

After leaving the hot tub, the group had fractured. In one room, Sugar had found herself accompanied by Amy for a body wrap. After their minute 'face off' at the apartment two days ago, both of them had shown themselves curious about the other, and lying cocooned side by side there was very little else to do than to talk.

"Wow, I tell you, now would be a bad time to discover you're claustrophobic," Amy's eyes darted left and right. "Part of the reason I did this, so I could test myself." There was a moment of silence.

"And?"

"And what?" Amy asked.

"Are you claustrophobic?" Sugar clarified.

"Well… I don't think so. I might still change my mind," she carefully tested her range of motion.

"So is that tall guy your boyfriend?" Sugar leapt to a new topic.

"My relationship with Sheldon is not so easily defined… but yes, I suppose you could say that. At least that's what I tell my mother, but strictly in order to get her off my back. You know how mothers are," she put on a chuckle of 'camaraderie.'

"Yeah, sure," Sugar slowly answered.

"Okay, yeah… I think I'm starting to feel it… Oh, that's tight…" Amy began to wriggle, fighting against the linen. "Miss, if you could let me out!" she called out.

Brittany had wanted to try the mud bath and, of the other six, only Mercedes had agreed to go with her, though she did hesitate greatly as they eased themselves in. Once they were in their respective mud it was a moment of letting everything sit, and then… Brittany had started to laugh, which had gotten Mercedes going. "Okay, this isn't bad," she decided.

"How is it a bath if we're covered in mud?" Brittany asked, flexing her fingers, looking at her arms.

"We're sitting in a bath."

"No, I know, but… we're going to have to take a bath, because we took a bath," she explained, which got Mercedes laughing again.

Not too far off, Santana was sweating up in the sauna with Penny and Bernadette. They had soon found the heat tired out Bernadette, who fell asleep sitting against the wall. There had been a couple of older women sitting across from them when they'd come in, but within minutes it was just the three of them – two, once Bernadette had fallen asleep. After a minute, Penny had looked to Bernadette, then turned back to Santana. "So, you and Brittany…" she slowly started, testing the waters. Santana didn't reply at first, which worried her; had she overstepped?

"Yeah," Santana finally answered, and Penny responded with a smile.

"She looks happy," she gave a nod, which allowed a smile to slip on her face as well.

"She talks about you a lot," Santana looked to her. "She was right, you're pretty cool," she complimented, and Penny chuckled.

"Well, thank you." Bernadette suddenly yawned, and the other two looked to her.

"Maybe we should get her out of here," Santana suggested.

"Couple more minutes," Penny declared, and Santana agreed, sitting back.

They had begun to land back in the same area and split again as they took turns at getting manicures and pedicures. Bernadette, surrounded by Brittany, Santana, and Mercedes for manicures, was finding it difficult not to broach the subject of Glee Club, which was making it come off as her long lost missed opportunity. "And you dance, too, right?" she'd asked after a while, and the girls nodded.

"Some better than others," Brittany added.

"Yeah, one of the guys in our club, broke his girlfriend's nose last year in rehearsal," Santana went on, smirking.

"I think I'd be scared of that," Bernadette frowned. "My face is kind of at that height."

"You just have to be careful," Mercedes told her. "Just keep an eye on the ones who could be a threat… Or be aware if you're the threat yourself."

"Or position yourself next to them, make yourself look better by comparison," Santana suggested. "Put Finn next to her though, then it's just not fair," she looked back to Brittany, whose hands nearly slipped as she laughed.

"Is that the nose breaker?" Bernadette asked, up for the gossip, and she got three nods back. Nearby, Penny and Amy sat flanking Sugar on the pedicure side. Amy had already been uncertain about the whole thing, and when the slightest touch had revealed her to be so ticklish that she'd nearly kicked the woman in the face, she'd bowed out and just sat, waiting, while Penny and Sugar were getting worked on.

"So… Sugar… Interesting name," Penny casually commented.

"I think so, too," she smiled. "It's unique, and I like being unique. Who wants a boring old name that five other girls in your class have?" she shrugged.

"There were three girls named Amy in my class," Amy pitched in, and Sugar pointed at her as though to say 'see?' "Our teacher developed nicknames for us. Blonde Amy, Short Amy…"

"Which one were you?" Penny asked.

"Third Amy," she nodded, and Penny frowned sympathetically.

When the group split again the Lima girls were off on their own, leaving Penny, Bernadette, and Amy, together again for the long expected massage. "Are you sure you can do this?" Penny asked Amy. "You nearly kicked that woman before…"

"I have particularly ticklish feet, which I'm just learning. I've also discovered a touch of claustrophobia. But I assure you, this won't be a problem," she shook her head.

"I want that one," Bernadette honed in on one of the men who came to get them. "Tell me I can't get a massage…" she muttered under her breath.

In the end it wasn't Amy who had trouble with going through with the massage. Bernadette had barely laid down that she'd sprung back up, hopped off the table and scurried off, her voice sounding very much like her future mother-in-law as she forbade the man from touching her and she went off cursing Howard for getting in her head, though they knew it was just her, not wanting to be touched by another just as much as he didn't want it. Meanwhile, Amy was melting like butter, and Penny only grew more and more uncomfortable at how comfortable Amy was getting. She closed her eyes and tried to block her out, but it wasn't happening.

Brittany, Santana, Mercedes, and Sugar sat all in a row, their faces covered with ever hardening facial masks. When left alone, they sat up, looking at each other, and immediately had to look away so they wouldn't laugh and cause their masks to crack. Once they'd regained control, they were able to look at each other again.

"I'm glad we did this," Mercedes told the others, and they quietly agreed.

"Hurts a lot less than matching tattoos," Santana pointed out.

"I'm going to sleep so good tonight," Sugar breathed.

"I can't feel my face…" Brittany sounded more at ease than alarmed, and through her mask they could still see she was smiling, though they probably had no idea what for; she'd just had a thought.

_The Bread Condition_

Leonard had gone off with Howard and Raj to do… some thing or another. He's stopped paying attention once he'd figured out it was nothing to interest him. Instead he had stayed home, deciding this would be the perfect time to reconsider his memorabilia display. He'd been staring at it more and more and he'd come to the conclusion that the distribution was all wrong. He was in the middle of calculating dimensions for new shelves when there was a knock at the door.

"Oh, good, they fired the old delivery guy," he told himself, believing he'd find his dinner order on the other side of that door. Instead, it was a blonde girl out of Lima, Ohio. "Brittany," he straightened in surprise. "I wasn't expecting you."

"Everyone else is asleep," she explained.

"It's not even seven!"

"Well we got back from the spa and they all kind of…" she mimed 'falling asleep.'

"How come you didn't?" he asked.

"I wanted to come here," she started, then smiled, "I have a favor to ask you."

"Is it money?" he asked, and she shook her head.

"Can you show me how to do the banana bread? I tried back home and it didn't work. I almost broke the oven," she revealed. "Please, Sheldon?"

"Alright, come in," he sighed, stepping aside and closing the door once she'd come through. "Though in the future you might not want to lead with 'I almost broke the oven.' It might discourage people from letting you near their oven. Lucky for you, I won't let that happen."

"You won't help?" she asked.

"No, I'll help. But you'll keep your distance from the oven," he instructed.

"Got it," she nodded. He brought a stool around and set her up at the island before clearing the space.

"Here's paper, and a pen, write down everything I tell you," he put the pad and pen in front of her.

"Everything?" she uncapped the pen.

"If it's about the recipe, yes. You don't have to write the rest," he corrected, looking back to her. She nodded quietly, recapping the pen. "This is a family recipe, so I want your word you'll keep it to yourself," he started pulling out bowls and other utensils.

"So I can't share the bread?" she asked, and her disappointment drew him back.

"No, of course you can share the bread, just not the… This is for a boy, isn't it," he deduced.

"I… No," she shook her head, but he was still looking at her. "Santana's not a boy," she persisted.

"Santana…" he repeated, not yet grasping. She gave a pointed look, and he blinked. "Oh… Oh…" he slowly put the pieces together. He stood there for a moment as though he'd retreated into thought, then paused, gave a slight shrug, then went to the pantry. "Okay, now's the time to start writing." She smiled and nodded, uncapping her pen and writing 'BANANA BREAD' in bold letters at the top of the page, then 'ingredients' under it, underlining the word.

Sheldon led her in a precise listing of ingredients, going so far as to make her write down the acceptable brands of each product, where needed. He wasn't sure she'd remember it all, in fact he kind of expected her to forget. So he had a thought.

"Alright, hold on," he told her, and she stopped writing. "Get up, switch places with me," he directed.

"Why?" she asked.

"You'll do it yourself, I'll direct you, and I'll write down the directions myself."

"You're letting me near the oven?"

"Yes," he confirmed. "Practical learning might be best for you. Just be glad I'm not my mother. 'Go ahead, Shelly,' she says, and then she takes the spoon back and says 'Oh go play with your sister, I'll do it' because I didn't agree with her recipe." Brittany bit back a laugh, which she tried to hide when he looked at her.

"I won't change your recipe," she promised. "It's perfect."

"Tell that to my mother," he shook his head. "You've got your ingredients, now here's what you do."

As he told her what to do, he scribbled along on the pad. She would wait for his instructions before doing anything, which he highly approved of. With all ingredients mixed in, Sheldon tested the mixture before they could put it in the oven.

"It's ready to go," he nodded.

"It's good?" she asked, hopeful.

"Yes, now take your pan," he told her, and she did as told, grinning with pride. As promised, he 'let her near the oven,' and once she'd set the timer he wrote out the final directions and turned the pad to her. "There it is, banana bread recipe," he told her. She blinked.

"You wrote a lot."

"Leave nothing to chance," he shook his head. Seeing her frowning at the sheets – there were three – he sighed. "I'll rewrite them," he reached for the pad, but she shook her head.

"No, don't, it's okay," she promised.

"Are you sure?" he asked, and she nodded. "Alright, well, now we wait," he told her.

"You want a rematch?" she asked, giving a quick indication of 'dancing.'

"You told Penny," was his answer, and her face flinched.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, it just slipped. I didn't tell anyone else, I swear… Well, except my cat, but he's not going to tell either," she shook her head. "We could watch a movie?" she made a counter offer.

"I suppose we can," he got up. "I'll let you choose," he moved to the rack and pulled out a number of boxes. "From these," he presented them to her. She looked at the titles for a minute, then another. He was getting antsy, but he managed to keep quiet. When she finally did point at one though, he let out a breath that told he was this close to losing his patience even with her. "An excellent choice," he told her, indicating for her to sit. She took the middle seat, waiting for his return.

It wasn't ten minutes later when the sleeping spell that had taken her roommates appeared to finally get its hands on her and she had no fight in her to resist. When Sheldon realized this he paused the movie, unsure how to proceed. "Brittany?" he whispered, in case she wasn't completely asleep, but she didn't respond. He got up, looking back at her for a moment before going out into the hall, giving three cautious knocks at the door to 4B. "Penny!" he whispered, repeated the knocks. "Penny!" he gave three more. "Penny!" he raised the volume on his whisper as much as he could. There was no response, and he imagined she had fallen to the same slumber as the others. He frowned, going back to his apartment.

In his absence, Brittany had plopped down in a resting position on the couch, though somehow managed not to intrude on his seat. He wasn't going to move her, but at the same time he had to remember his manners. Going into the closet, he brought a pillow and blanket. He hesitated before carefully lifting her head and slipping the pillow under. Once that was done he breathed, reaching for the blanket and laying it on top of her. Putting on the headphones, he restarted the movie, sitting at her feet. He paused it again when the timer rang, rushing to shut it off before it would wake her. He pulled the bread from the oven, looked at it… It was as perfect as it would have been, had he been the one to make it… and she couldn't see it yet.

It had taken Leonard returning for him to realize, if she was going to just sleep the night there, he might need to inform some people, like the other girls she'd travelled with. He'd called the hotel, left a message for them there, did the same with her aunt two floors below. When that was done he gave a look to Leonard as though to say 'there, happy,' instructed him not to touch the banana bread, and then went back to his movie next to the sleeping blonde.

Before going to bed, he'd lifted her feet to let her rest on the couch proper, her feet on his seat.

TO BE CONTINUED (TOMORROW)


	5. 7 The Cheesecake Convention

_**This is a shift day [see above].** There was another upload this morning: Last First._

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><p><strong>"The Troubletone Incursion"<strong>

**7. The Cheesecake Convention**

The evening after their spa day had been all about staying glued to the couch, riding out the wave of ease brought to them by all the bathing, and sitting, and wrapping, and facials… They'd never made it to bed. In the morning, after dreaming that she was getting a bear hug from a proper, massive bear, Santana had woken up, toppled to the side, leaning to the armrest on the couch, and the bear was still there, or… She flinched, looking to the side, finding Sugar resting against her, and Mercedes resting against Sugar, and Brittany… Brittany…

"Britt?" her voice croaked. She wasn't at the end of the back ache conga line, wasn't on either of the sofas… Had she made it back to bed? "I… Get off!" she winced, trying to squeeze out from under the two girls. She got out at last, which brought Sugar and Mercedes crashing down and woke them with a start.

"Don't eat me!" Sugar screeched.

"It's me, relax!" Mercedes groaned.

"Get off of me!" Sugar pushed, as Mercedes managed to sit up, and started checking that all her limbs were present and accounted for.

Santana had stretched – big mistake – and dragged her feet toward the bedroom, looked to both beds… With all of them on the couch, no one had slept in those beds, apparently not even Brittany. She checked the bathroom, just in case… no sign of her. All she had was a back ache, a neck ache, and a headache thanks to the bickering of the other two… Now to round off this rousing morning, she was feeling a heart ache… Brittany had disappeared, and panic had taken her place.

"I can't believe, she's finally done it… She's wandered off…" she went looking for her phone. "Shut up!" she yelled at Sugar and Mercedes, who froze and looked at her.

"What's wrong?" Mercedes asked.

"Britt's missing," she explained, finally getting a hold of her phone and looking through her messages… Nothing from her. She dialled her number, waited. "Pick up, come on…" she mumbled.

"There's a message," Sugar spoke up, indicating the suite's phone, the blinking light. Santana turned to look, snapped her fingers to indicate one of them should check it, while she kept waiting out the tone. Sugar skittered to check it out, listening, then nodding to herself and looking back to Santana.

"She's at Sheldon's," she reported, and the panic began to recede. "He says she's asleep, and then this other guy says they'll go to this place called the Cheesecake Factory for breakfast and we should meet them there. Can we have cheesecake for breakfast?" she asked, confused. Santana hung up, moving to the closet.

"Get dressed, someone call a cab."

The ride had been a reversal from the suite that morning; now Sugar and Mercedes were quiet while Santana was loud, bickering with the driver for him to go faster, drive better… How he hadn't kicked them out in the middle of the road was beyond them. Finally they'd made it to the restaurant and Santana had gone ahead, leaving the others to pay while she went in, scanned the room, and there she was.

"San…" Brittany started, getting up, and then there were arms around her. "… tana." She closed her eyes, hugged back. "Sorry, I didn't mean to worry you."

"Well, you did," Santana told her, more relieved than angry.

"I made you banana bread," she tried to sound encouraging.

"You did?" She could feel Santana smiling against her shoulder.

"It's not toxic either," she added as they pulled apart. Now Santana could see there were other people there. Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, Raj, Amy, Bernadette… Penny was there, too, in her uniform. With Sugar and Mercedes coming in, this made them a breakfast party of ten.

Howard was being all loving with Bernadette, going on about how she hadn't gotten the massage. Of course the more he talked about it, the more abuse Bernadette's napkin received. Raj was trying to keep it together while Sugar, who appeared to have taken a shine to him, talked his ear off, apparently taking his inability to respond as an opportunity to talk, uninterrupted. Amy was looking at her nails like they were the prettiest things she'd ever seen and she couldn't believe they were attached to her hands. Santana found herself sitting across from Sheldon, which made it easier, amidst the madness, for her to realize he was 'discreetly' checking her out. She tried to ignore it, but she was growing more unnerved by the minute.

"Okay, I'm trying to be good here, because she likes you, but if you're going to keep staring at me…" Sheldon stared at her a moment more before seemingly making a decision.

"Would you excuse us for a moment?" he turned to address the other eight like he expected them to step away. The majority of them didn't even flinch or look at him. Santana got up, indicating that he should follow. "Well, alright," he pulled his chair back and stood. Brittany noticed them moving off and stared in confusion.

They'd ended up near the bar, where Santana was met with a very serious looking Sheldon. There was something about his posture that told her she wasn't going to like what he had to say. She didn't know him the way Brittany did, which already was built of one, now two, visits, and a bunch of phone calls, from what she knew. What she had seen and heard so far though had yet to let her see what she saw.

"So Brittany tells me you two are... Well, she didn't give an actual word but I'd assume any of the old standards apply."

"Old standards?" she asked, frowning.

"Dating, in a relationship, a couple, girlfriends, lovers, companions, partners, sweethearts…" he was rolling through words like there was a thesaurus open in his brain.

"Okay, okay, I get the point," she stopped him. "Yeah, any of those will do..." she nodded. His stare focused, and she wasn't sure what was about to happen, but if anyone asked her, she wouldn't have guessed his next words.

"What are your intentions with her?" It actually unfroze her, and she blinked.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me," he nodded. "She's a peculiar girl, and I've had to go through enough drama, watching Leonard and Penny's relationship, before, during, and after, and I've been accused of not grasping a lot of things in my lifetime, but this is not going to be one of them. Now all I need to know is you're not going to put her through that."

"Well, it's not my intention," Santana shook her head. She still saw him as one tall weirdo, but maybe somewhere in there he could make the kind of sense she understood. Leave it to Brittany to let her see that. "I love her, that's all you need to know." He observed her, probably evaluating her response, then finally he 'stood down.'

"Alright," he declared, and then turned on his heel to return to the table. Santana stood there, dumbstruck, then shook her head to herself and joined him, returning to her seat at Brittany's side. When she sat, the blonde touched her arm.

"What happened?" she whispered.

"I'll tell you later," Santana promised, gazing back to Sheldon, who was now informing Sugar and Mercedes of Leonard's lactose intolerance, much to Leonard's annoyance.

TO BE CONTINUED (TOMORROW)


	6. 8 The Couch 9 The Breakfast

_**This is a DOUBLE day [see above].** Two chapters in one!_

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><p><strong>"The Troubletone Incursion"<strong>

**8 & 9: The Couch Flirtation / The Breakfast Gathering**

_The Couch Flirtation_

After breakfast at the Cheesecake Factory, the four girls had been left to decide what to make of their day. With the 'disappearance' of Brittany that morning, Santana didn't look ready to let her girlfriend out of her sight, or her side. Sugar had wanted to pick up some souvenirs, and the moment Brittany had heard the word 'souvenirs,' the day was set. They would get the typical souvenirs, everything and anything that was identified with the name Pasadena, but then they'd also pick up a few more personal things, for friends, family… And after talk of matching tattoos, matching cars, even as a joke, that night they would be sporting matching Cheesecake Factory t-shirts. They had only gotten four, one for each of them and no one else.

They had reconvened at the restaurant for dinner, which was when they'd gotten the t-shirts. They'd run into Penny again, where Brittany had given her the souvenir she'd bought for her. They had been confused as to why she would get something for her, since Penny was from here, but Brittany had insisted. She'd gotten something for Sheldon, too. After they'd finished dinner it had been Mercedes who'd asked Penny if she wanted to join them for breakfast at the hotel the next morning, when they'd found out the blonde was off work.

They'd gotten back to the hotel, entered the suite… and they were tired, not nearly in the mood for dancing like their first couple of nights. "My back still hurts…" Sugar complained.

"Easy for you to say, I had both of you on mine last night," Santana pointed out.

"So quit complaining, get changed, we're hitting the hot tub," Mercedes declared, and that was that; they were off to the hot tub.

They had the whole place to themselves. For a moment they'd thought about sending one of them back up to the room to sneak in some things from the mini bar, but as soon as they were in the water they didn't want to get out, so they just enjoyed the tub, each of them in one corner of the square structure. They were drawn in by the calm, didn't want to fall asleep, so they sang. Their voices resonated, bounced off the walls… it made them laugh, which broke their voices and sent the pieces bouncing back at them… which made them laugh even harder.

They returned to the suite, changed into PJs – with their Cheesecake Factory shirts – and they voted for a full on movie night, snacks and all. Mercedes and Sugar had gone out for those. When they'd returned there was… something… like they'd come in the middle of something with the two who'd stayed behind, but neither of them would tip their hand.

The only rule for the movie selection was no dramas, no snoozers. That directed them to action, horror, and comedy. Sugar had begged and begged for a horror movie, and they'd regretted giving in instantly. As soon as 'scary things' started happening she hid her face behind a pillow and would screech 'No, no, no!' If anyone went by in the hall, they might think someone was actually getting killed in there.

To bring them back to a saner place, and to get Sugar to climb down from her previous freak out, they had gone for a comedy on their second movie. It all worked fine until an actor from the horror movie had turned up near the end of their comedy, and Sugar had taken a dive back into panic. Santana had sacrificed her third movie choice for a second comedy that would hopefully rebuild Sugar again and not catch them with something right near the end once more.

Mercedes had been the first one to bow out, going to bed about halfway through that third movie. By the way Sugar went next, they could guess she'd been wanting to go, but had waited until someone else went to bed, so that she wouldn't be alone in the room. With the others gone, Santana and Brittany had begun to gravitate closer to one another.

"Think they're asleep?" Brittany asked after a few minutes.

"Mercedes for sure. Sugar though…" Santana shrugged. Brittany got up, tiptoeing toward the bedroom and peering in. She turned back with a smirk, then reached to shut the door and stalk back to her bag, pulling out the wrapped loaf of banana bread and dropping back next to Santana.

"For you…" she presented it to her, making her laugh.

"Looks good," Santana looked to her before unwrapping the loaf. The smell of bananas wafted out and hit them hard. When Brittany had woken up the morning after they'd baked it, the bread was all wrapped up, so it was the first time she really saw it… It looked just like the ones Sheldon had made, and she was so relieved, proud… Santana's reaction was just the part that made it even better. Still…

"M… maybe I should try it first," she pointed, but Santana had already torn off a piece and ate it without hesitation. Brittany braced like she expected her to choke or gag or keel over, and again Santana laughed, tearing off another piece and offering it to her.

"You jump, I jump," she promised and Brittany ate the piece.

"Okay, that's pretty good," the blonde smirked and she got a nod in agreement. They got to tearing off more bits, eating and half-watching the movie. "I'm really sorry I worried you this morning…"

"Hey, it's all forgotten now," Santana assured her.

"I just wanted to learn how to make the banana bread, so I could make it myself… for you." Santana looked at her, smiling so not to cry, taken by the gesture.

"Well, I think we should keep the rest of this for later," she started wrapping what was left of the bread.

"But I can make more," Brittany shook her head. "And you can't leave that lying around; they'll find it and they'll eat it," she pointed out.

"Yeah, I'd like to see them try," Santana smirked, turning to put it nearby.

When she turned back, to her, there was a moment of silence, remembering how close they'd been, to this, before Mercedes and Sugar had returned with the snacks for movie night. As respectful as they intended to be around them, there was only so much they could do, and being alone, just them, for the first time since they'd arrived in Pasadena, it had been too much to pass up, but then they'd returned… and now they were in bed, sleeping, in the other room… Santana had smiled, held a finger to her lips before pulling the blonde close.

"Wait, but…" Brittany gave weak resistance, indicating the closed bedroom door.

"They won't know a thing," Santana shook her head. "One of them sleeps like a rock, the other's too scared something will grab her leg if she leaves the bed. I guess the only thing you need to ask yourself now is if you intend to do anything that would go over all that and get them out here…" her eyes never left the blue ones staring back at her, showing her one readiness. Her answer was a pair of lips on hers, tasting of bananas and spices.

_The Breakfast Gathering_

For the second in as many mornings, Santana woke up on the couch of their suite. Only this morning was very different from the previous one. She was not half-sitting and half-lying in a crooked position with two girls weighing down on her, and she wasn't thrown into a panic at not finding her girlfriend anywhere. Her dreams had no threatening bears, instead her dreams were all of her… a yellow dress, dancing, smiling… And when she woke she was lying out on the couch, curled up with the girl she loved safe in her arms. Brittany still slept, and she wouldn't move, for fear of waking her…

But then she could hear sounds, muffled voices behind doors… nearby, a door… Oh… It was Mercedes and Sugar, in the bedroom. She could barely make out their voices, but she imagined the conversation went something like 'Where are Santana and Brittany, how come they're not here?' She sighed to herself – so much for her idyllic morning.

"Britt, wake up," she whispered, lightly shaking the girl's shoulder. She moved in her sleep.

"I can't go to the moon, I have Spanish class…" she mumbled. Santana smirked, kissing the side of her head, near her ear.

"You can go to the moon later," she promised. "Wake up," she asked again. It took half a minute more before she could feel her finally start to awaken. By then, the voices on the other side of the door told her that they were about to come out of there, looking for them. Santana lifted her head to look over the back of the couch just as the door opened and Mercedes and Sugar walked out, dishevelled and confused.

"There she is!" Sugar pointed. Her voice worked to startle Brittany the rest of the way out of sleep and Santana was nearly head-butted when she sat up.

"And there she is," Mercedes nodded. The room came to a standstill. The two on the couch realized full well what had transpired the night before and, more than that, they knew it wouldn't be long before one or both of the others caught on. Maybe if they didn't move too fast… "Brittany, your shirt's on backwards," Mercedes pointed out, and Santana could hear in her voice that she'd connected the dots… Brittany wasn't there yet though, and she just shrugged, which made Santana chuckle.

"Well it could have been worse…" Sugar piped in after a moment, and Mercedes just stared at her. "What?" she blinked. "It could have…"

They were saved by a knock at the door. Now they remembered it was the next day… which would mean Penny was on the other side of that door. "We have to get ready for breakfast!" Brittany declared, moving to get up while Mercedes and Sugar moved to go get dressed. Santana tugged at her arm to keep her down. "What…" she started, and Santana nodded down for her to take a closer look at their current state of undress. "Oh… right…"

Penny had ended up waiting fifteen minutes in the hall. By the sounds of voices and running inside the suite, she knew they were there, that they had to be getting ready, so she waited… waited… She was really getting hungry. But finally the door was pulled open and she looked in to find Brittany there, ready to go. "Morning!" the girl smiled. Penny observed her for a moment, like there was something in her face that was different and she couldn't place it.

"Hey… Was I too early?"

"No, I… No…" Brittany shook her head. "We were just up late, watching movies, and… Come in," she stepped aside. Penny walked in and she blinked.

"Wow…" she looked around. "Nice digs… Nice… Nice…" she almost sputtered.

"All hail Al Motta," Santana walked in, and Sugar on her heels just had to smile.

"I…" Penny was still too distracted by the room, but then she snapped out of it. "Right, well… you girls ready to go eat?"

"Yes, please," Mercedes threw a glance to Santana and Brittany before moving toward the door.

"Is she okay?" Penny turned to them.

"Yeah, she'll be fine," Santana promised, ushering the rest of them out the door. The five went down to the dining room where breakfast was served. They sat, soon served coffee.

"So you're flying home tomorrow, right?" Penny asked them.

"Checking out at noon," Mercedes confirmed.

"Can't believe it's already over," Sugar looked sad.

"I'm so glad we came," Brittany smiled to her friend and semi-host. "But I hate that we have to go," she was with Sugar on the sadness.

"But you'll be happy to go home, too, won't you?" Penny tried to cheer them up. "To see your families, and your friends from your club…" She'd been informed here and there on the whole saga of quitting New Directions to join the Troubletones, and then their defeat leading them back to their old club, through her calls with Brittany.

"Yeah, guess so," Santana shrugged.

"Well, hey, after you leave the hotel, you need to come by the apartment, okay?" Penny told them.

"Have to say goodbye to Sheldon," Brittany spoke up, the reminder returning her to sadness, which Penny immediately attempted to plug closed. She'd already been seeing her neighbor's 'subtle' heightening of reactions as Brittany's departure grew more and more imminent. He didn't know how to be upset, probably didn't realize that was what was happening to him, so instead he'd converted these feelings in being even more prone to outbursts than usual… Leonard was losing it, but she got it.

"We'll all be there to see you off," she promised. "Maybe before you leave, you can make a girl's dream come true?" she suggested. When the Lima girls looked back at her, curious, Penny smirked with conspiracy…

TO BE CONCLUDED (TOMORROW)


	7. 10 The Group Departure

_**This is a shift day [see above].** There was another upload this morning: Worth the Chance._

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><p><strong>"The Troubletone Incursion"<strong>

**10. The Group Departure**

**A/N: the crux of this chapter was the discovery that Melissa Rauch (Bernadette) is a gleek ;)**

The rest of their last full day had been spent with no real direction, just going as they pleased, taking their time. When they had returned to their suite, not wanting to have to spend their last morning running around madly, they had started packing. With music filling the suite to keep the energy up, their last night had taken on airs of their first two, dancing up a farewell to Pasadena party. Finally they'd all gone to bed, where they'd negotiated a bunking swap, Mercedes sharing with Sugar to let Santana and Brittany share their own, where they'd fallen asleep within moments of their heads meeting their pillows.

When morning came they ordered breakfast from room service, everyone taking her turn at the shower while they waited, so that when their food arrived they were almost all dressed. They wanted to be out of there as soon as possible, to leave them more time to spend with Penny, Sheldon, and the rest of them, before the car came again, for the long drive back to the airport. This had been Santana's suggestion, motivated by the knowledge of how much Brittany wished she'd gotten to spend more time with Sheldon since their arrival.

When they'd made it to the building, much earlier than anticipated, Brittany had dropped in for a quick visit with her aunt, while the other three had gone up to see Penny. It was as she was coming up to join them that her ears caught the sound, recognized the song… It drew her up to the fourth floor proper, and there she confirmed, as barely audible as it was, that it was coming from 4A. Curious, she'd tried the door, in case it wasn't locked, and when it did open she saw him there. His back was turned, but she could see what he was doing, and on the screen she saw the image he'd likened to Jack Sparrow last summer. She nearly drew blood from biting back any sort of sound. She carefully stepped in, shutting the door soundlessly and watching him finish. She didn't know how long he'd been at it, but she could guess he'd done it more than once that day.

Once he'd stopped he appeared to sense he wasn't alone and he spun back, jumping in surprise when he saw her, letting out a near screech in the process, which made her jump, too. "Sorry… Sheldon…" she smiled. "I wasn't spying, just… I heard the music and… You've gotten better," she complimented.

"Well, I remembered you were leaving today, and I hadn't done this since the last time you were here…" he was trying to work his way out of the hole he'd dug himself into, but he had no footing.

"Yeah, you have," she declared, and he frowned his way through an inner debate – admit or deny. "The other day at breakfast I didn't get to say thank you again, for the recipe and showing me how to do it. Me and Santana ate like half of it the other night. I never got it to taste that good before… or ever…"

"That's what happens when you get clear instructions," he nodded, glad to have an out from having to answer her previous claim.

"I have something I want to ask you," she stepped away from the door, toward him.

"Another recipe?" he asked, and she shook her head. "No troubles with the law?" he turned off the game. Again, she shook her head. "What is it then?" he asked. She took more steps toward him, leaving about three between them now.

"Well, last time Penny had said not to try this, so I didn't, but this time I was wondering if I could get a hug goodbye?" she smiled. He looked hesitant. "There's no one here. I won't tell…"

"Like you didn't tell anyone about this?" he indicated the remote dangling from his wrist, not angry so much as pointing out the obvious. Still she bowed her head in apology, taking it to mean 'no.'

"Okay, well, it's alright…" she promised. It was a few seconds before she felt two extremely uncertain arms close around her and she smiled, wrapping her own arms around him as well. She was aware this wasn't something he liked to do, so she wasn't going to overdo it, but she held as long as she thought she could. "Thanks," she told him before pulling away. There she saw the closest thing to a normal smile she'd ever seen on him. It was clumsy, off centre, but it was him, and she appreciated it more than he'd know. "I should go back with the others, but we'll be here soon," she promised.

"Yes, I know, Penny told me already," he nodded. "Didn't leave much of a choice." Brittany smirked.

She had rejoined the girls at Penny's, where they'd apparently been busy discussing Penny's request from the previous morning. Before long they were informed by Leonard that the others had arrived, so they had crossed the hall. By the way he stood they could see Sheldon still had some issues with this many people being there at once, but he never expressed it vocally.

They didn't have more than an hour left before the car would come to pick them up. When they'd crossed over and seen the others there had been some concern as to whether they'd get to do what they'd planned. Amy was apparently disappointed that she hadn't been invited to their breakfast the day before. Bernadette and Howard were still not completely over the whole massage debacle. And Raj had uttered his first words to the Lima girls, beer in hand, the better to keep a distance between him and Sugar. But Penny had talked to Leonard, he'd helped her set up, and then she'd whistled to get their attention.

"Okay, hi," she smiled, once they were all looking at her. "We have a surprise. For one night, and one night only…"

"It's morning," both Sheldon and Brittany pointed out, and Penny inhaled before she would speak.

"Straight from Lima, Ohio, give it up for the Troubletones!" she hollered as though she were addressing a crowd of thousands rather than a handful of doctors… and Howard. They gave an uncertain hand of applause as Brittany, Santana, Mercedes and Sugar stepped up.

"We're only backup," Santana shook her head, and Brittany turned to the petite blonde with the glasses, grinning from ear to ear.

"Bernadette, today you're our honorary Troubletone," she declared. Bernadette froze in shock.

"Your chance to finally be in Glee Club," Mercedes explained.

"Hit it!" Sugar pointed to Penny, who stood at the ready, to start the music, while Brittany grabbed on to Bernadette's hands and pulled her to her feet.

"But… hold on… I haven't…" she sputtered, shaking her head.

"Trust me, you'll know the song, and you'll be awesome," Brittany told her, leaning forward to whisper the name in her ear. The way Penny had it, this was Bernadette's 'closing time special,' and she'd hum it under her breath many times while the two of them would close up the Cheesecake Factory. Hearing the title had infused her with a bit of bravery, though still not enough to make her turn and face her 'audience.' It took Santana's words to install a risk taker in her heart.

"Come on, prove your mother wrong," she passed on defiance, raising her chin, and Bernadette did the same, mixing in mischief as she looked to Penny who smirked like a proud mama and hit play. All of a sudden Bernadette Rostenkowski had gone from microbiologist-slash-waitress to headlining the Troubletones, faring much better than anyone would have guessed. The four girls behind her were more than happy to act as her backing vocals, with a quick choreography thrown in, practiced at Penny's. As much as their girl in the spotlight tried to keep a straight face, they could see her fighting against a winning smile, overtaken with excitement, but she soldiered on. Howard was definitely helping to make that happen, even more than the others who cheered her on. The only exception, uncertain how to react, was Sheldon, until he caught the look Brittany threw him, emphasizing a smile, which he attempted, with mixed results. It got a laugh out of Brittany, which he supposed wasn't so bed. Now maybe later she could explain to him why this was called the 'shoop shoop song….'

They hadn't been able to stick around very long after the end of the performance. At the very least they had been thanked profusely by their one-time leading lady, and they would take the moment with them, as much as she would take it with her. When the car arrived the girls were helped with their baggage by the rest of the group, while three of them stayed behind. Penny would give Brittany a tight hug goodbye, making her promise to call when they'd land back home. Then she'd look to Sheldon, saying nothing as she extricated herself from the hall, joining the others downstairs and leaving two now standing outside of 4A. Brittany looked back to Sheldon.

"One day you have to come to Lima," she declared.

"Ohio?" he didn't look eager.

"Is there another one?" she shrugged.

"Well actually…" he started, then paused. "We'll see. Maybe. One day," he volunteered what he could, and she took it, smiling. She kind of wanted to hug him again, but she didn't want to push her luck. "So this is it then," he nodded, and she did the same. After a moment, she kept her head bowed.

"Goodbye, Sheldon," she called back to their previous parting. He did the same.

"Goodbye, Brittany."

THE END


End file.
